A senior UK Government minister has warned that an independent Scotland would have to rely heavily on a “volatile” source of revenue with oil and gas.
Secretary Danny Alexander claimed North Sea tax income in the year the SNP wants the nation to go it alone would be half of today’s figure.
The Highland MP also told business leaders that the Nationalists could not “wish away” the volatility of oil price and production.
During a meeting with Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce members, Mr Alexander said Scotland’s geographic share of the North Sea would have raised on average £6billion a year in tax revenue since devolution. He added: “But crucially, the geographic share of North Sea oil and gas revenues has fluctuated from just over £2billion to almost £12billion, depending what year you look at. The UK as a whole can absorb such volatility by pooling tax revenues from a broad and diverse tax base. Within the UK economy, North Sea revenues represent around 1-2% of total tax receipts. But for the figures produced for Scotland, this geographic share of the North Sea would represent around 10-20% of their revenues – a huge dependence on a volatile source of revenue.”
North-east MSP Maureen Watt accused Mr Alexander of “selective amnesia”. She said he had been the architect of a £10billion tax grab on the oil and gas industry in 2011, which was used to help fund a 1p cut in fuel duty.
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